Jerome Lejeune, A Saintly Scientist
Mercatonet has a story on the French doctor who discovered that a patient with Down's had an extra chromosome at the 21st pair.
...The genetic diagnosis known as Trisomy 21 was born, establishing the first ever link between mental disability and a chromosome disorder -- and heralding a new era in genetics.
It was a discovery of incalculable importance to people with the condition and their families -- if only at first from a symbolic point of view. The embarrassing and misleading term "mongolism" was gradually retired (although it still crops up) and the term Down's adopted after John Langdon Down who first described the syndrome.
But Lejeune's contribution went beyond the scientific into the realm of what we might call "public relations" as he sought to open people's eyes to the human dignity of those affected by the syndrome and their claim on our love and effort. With his trademark combination of precise observation, moral insight and poetry he once wrote:
With their slightly slanting eyes, their little nose in a round face and their unfinished features, trisomic children are more child-like than other children. All children have short hands and short fingers; theirs are shorter. Their entire anatomy is more rounded, without any asperities or stiffness. Their ligaments, their muscles, are so supple that it adds a tender languor to their way of being. And this sweetness extends to their character: they are communicative and affectionate, they have a special charm which is easier to cherish than to describe. This is not to say that Trisomy 21 is a desirable condition. It is an implacable disease which deprives the child of that most precious gift handed down to us through genetic heredity: the full power of rational thought. This combination of a tragic chromosomic error and a naturally endearing nature, immediately shows what medicine is all about: hatred of disease and love of the diseased."
If only doctors who are so quick to recommend abortion in these circumstances had the same understanding.
Earlier this month, Paris Archbishop Andre Vingt-Trois launched the process for his beatification.
Via The Curt Jester.
My Comments:
As a Psychologist, I worked for many years with children of Down Syndrome, as well as with parents, teachers, and administrators, and it never ceased to amaze me how much these children were able to accomplish in a stimulating environment when given the individual attention and the love that they deserve as children of God. They do indeed have a special charm and a loving nature that is so endearing. To imagine anyone destroying this child because of a disability is heartbreaking. There are so many couples out there who are childless and would love to have a sweet child like this to care for - God has created a parent for every life that enters this world - whether it be the biological parent or the adoptive parent. Every child is wanted by someone.
Pro-life Quotes from Jerome Lejeune:
"...a society that kills its children has lost its soul and its hope..."
~ Jerome Lejeune, Life is a Blessing: The Biography of Jerome Lejeune, by Clara Lejeune p. 49
"Many years ago, my father was a Jewish physician in Braunau, Austria. On one particular day, two babies had been delivered by one of his colleagues. One was a fine healthy boy with a strong cry. His parents were extremely proud and happy. The other was a little girl, but her parents were extremely sad, for she was a Mongoloid (Down Syndrome) baby. I followed them both for almost 50 years. The girl grew up, living at home, and was finally destined to be the one who nursed her mother through a very long and lingering illness after a stroke. I do not remember her name. I do, however, remember the boy's name. He died in a bunker in Berlin. His name was Adolf Hitler."
"To accept the fact that, after fertilization has taken place, a new human has come into being is no longer a matter of taste or opinion. The human nature of the human being from conception to old age is not a metaphysical conception. It is plain experimental evidence."
...The genetic diagnosis known as Trisomy 21 was born, establishing the first ever link between mental disability and a chromosome disorder -- and heralding a new era in genetics.
It was a discovery of incalculable importance to people with the condition and their families -- if only at first from a symbolic point of view. The embarrassing and misleading term "mongolism" was gradually retired (although it still crops up) and the term Down's adopted after John Langdon Down who first described the syndrome.
But Lejeune's contribution went beyond the scientific into the realm of what we might call "public relations" as he sought to open people's eyes to the human dignity of those affected by the syndrome and their claim on our love and effort. With his trademark combination of precise observation, moral insight and poetry he once wrote:
With their slightly slanting eyes, their little nose in a round face and their unfinished features, trisomic children are more child-like than other children. All children have short hands and short fingers; theirs are shorter. Their entire anatomy is more rounded, without any asperities or stiffness. Their ligaments, their muscles, are so supple that it adds a tender languor to their way of being. And this sweetness extends to their character: they are communicative and affectionate, they have a special charm which is easier to cherish than to describe. This is not to say that Trisomy 21 is a desirable condition. It is an implacable disease which deprives the child of that most precious gift handed down to us through genetic heredity: the full power of rational thought. This combination of a tragic chromosomic error and a naturally endearing nature, immediately shows what medicine is all about: hatred of disease and love of the diseased."
If only doctors who are so quick to recommend abortion in these circumstances had the same understanding.
Earlier this month, Paris Archbishop Andre Vingt-Trois launched the process for his beatification.
Via The Curt Jester.
My Comments:
As a Psychologist, I worked for many years with children of Down Syndrome, as well as with parents, teachers, and administrators, and it never ceased to amaze me how much these children were able to accomplish in a stimulating environment when given the individual attention and the love that they deserve as children of God. They do indeed have a special charm and a loving nature that is so endearing. To imagine anyone destroying this child because of a disability is heartbreaking. There are so many couples out there who are childless and would love to have a sweet child like this to care for - God has created a parent for every life that enters this world - whether it be the biological parent or the adoptive parent. Every child is wanted by someone.
Pro-life Quotes from Jerome Lejeune:
"...a society that kills its children has lost its soul and its hope..."
~ Jerome Lejeune, Life is a Blessing: The Biography of Jerome Lejeune, by Clara Lejeune p. 49
"Many years ago, my father was a Jewish physician in Braunau, Austria. On one particular day, two babies had been delivered by one of his colleagues. One was a fine healthy boy with a strong cry. His parents were extremely proud and happy. The other was a little girl, but her parents were extremely sad, for she was a Mongoloid (Down Syndrome) baby. I followed them both for almost 50 years. The girl grew up, living at home, and was finally destined to be the one who nursed her mother through a very long and lingering illness after a stroke. I do not remember her name. I do, however, remember the boy's name. He died in a bunker in Berlin. His name was Adolf Hitler."
"To accept the fact that, after fertilization has taken place, a new human has come into being is no longer a matter of taste or opinion. The human nature of the human being from conception to old age is not a metaphysical conception. It is plain experimental evidence."
I posted on this post on Dr. Lejeune too. He's one of my daughter's patron saints.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your beautiful thoughts on children with Down Syndrome. As the mother of a five year old daughter with Down's, you give me great hope for Christina's future.
I have always loved that story about Hitler and the child with Down Syndrome.Now, I'll paste it into my blog, thanks Jean!